It's Miami and Porty... but which is which?

THE sun-kissed beaches of Miami might seem a million miles away from Edinburgh’s wind-swept seafront.

But luxury flats on Portobello Promenade are being marketed as the Capital’s answer to the Florida resort.

The modern flats are described as "Miami-style" in the sales brochure - which even carries a picture of a glamorous couple frolicking in the surf under brilliant blue skies.

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The image is a far cry from the faded glamour normally associated with Portobello and the bucket-and-spade traditions of its heyday. But the flats are being snapped up by eager buyers at prices of up to 400,000.

The 11 flats on the Promenade are said to boast "fabulous sea views" across the Forth.

Hundreds of potential buyers put in notes of interest in the homes, whose prices start at 180,000 for a two-bedroom flat, rising to the 400,000 for a penthouse apartment.

Eight of the nine flats, on the site of a former amusement arcade at the junction of the Promenade and Bath Street, have been snapped up within weeks of going on sale.

The finishing touches are being put to the last two, which will go on the market shortly.

Edinburgh-based Gregor Homes today insisted the popularity of the flats backed up its marketing.

"There is undoubtedly a Miami feel," said a spokeswoman, who described Portobello as "re-emerging as one of the city’s desirable locales". "We have been describing the apartments as Miami-style as they do have a very stylish and modern-looking exterior and they’re right on beach," she added.

City council chiefs envisage the entire waterfront area from Portobello to Cramond as Edinburgh’s "Forth Riviera".

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But the Gregor Homes development has not been welcomed by Portobello residents.

Marie Wills, who runs Mulberries gift shop on Portobello High Street, said: "I can’t quite see Portobello being transformed into Scotland’s Miami by this development. The new building is a monstrosity. It sticks out like a sore thumb."

Andrew Flowerdew, 36, a project worker with homeless people who regularly walks his dog along the Promenade, said:

"Portobello could be anything it wanted to be, although it is maybe lacking a little bit of the Miami sunshine.

"But that building is simply too out of place to be accepted. There are not many people here who think too fondly of it."

However, Morad Mohammed, 23, owner of Sizzler’s restaurant on the High Street, welcomed the development.

"It is great to see investment like this and anything that will bring more people and more business to the area has to be welcomed," he said.

Community leader Diana Cairns, who has been campaigning against plans for a new supermarket in Portobello, insisted the Gregor Homes development is an eyesore.

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She said: "It’s a hideously ugly building and I don’t know anyone who likes it. It’s ruined the view looking out to sea as you come down Bath Street.

"As for comparing Portobello with Miami, you need three layers of clothes on to walk down the beach - what a load of nonsense."

John Stewart, chairman of Portobello Amenity Society, said:

"Miami-style buildings should be in Miami, not Portobello."

Litter is major vice at seaside

PORTOBELLO beach is still being marred by visitors dropping litter.

The latest findings of Beachwatch show the amount of rubbish being dropped by members of the public on the beach is twice the national average.

Volunteers across Britain recently took part in clean-up operations on their local beaches to collect data for the report, compiled by the Marine Conservation Society.

And the overwhelming message from beaches in Scotland was that people had to learn to pick up their litter.

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Over the 100 metres of Portobello beach cleaned by volunteers, 63 items of litter dropped by visitors, such as sweet wrappers and crisp packets, were found. This made up 62 per cent of all the rubbish found on the beach, twice the national average.

The worst beach in the Lothians was Cramond, where volunteers picked up 975 items of litter, including sewage-related debris and medical waste.

Calum Duncan, Marine Conservation Officer for Scotland, said: People need to start taking more notice of the effect they have on the environment, and take their litter home."

Throughout Scotland, 63,915 litter items were collected on 46 beaches. Litter from beach visitors represented the main source of litter, 33.4 per cent, followed by sewage-related debris, fishing debris and shipping debris.